The present invention relates to apparatus and method for transporting cigarette filter rods. More particularly, the invention relates to improvements in the transfer apparatus used to transfer cigarette filter rods from a magazine to a transport drum.
Cigarette filter rods are frequently made in the shape of long cylinders or rods transported in bulk quantities, and then separated and delivered in a particular spatial orientation and in a particular sequence. Usually, the filter rods are delivered in bulk to a magazine from which the filter rods must be fed singularly to a transfer drum in sequential order for further processing.
Generally, there are several ways to transfer the filter rods out of the magazine. One way is to have a gravity feed chute transport the filter rods to a transfer drum having a fluted surface to accept and transport the cigarette filter rods. However, several problems arise when this technique is used. The filter rods tend to clump in the magazine and block the entrance to the gravity feed chute. This blockage prevents the flow of single cigarette filter rods into the transfer drum. In a high speed filter rod production operation, blockage at the feed slot preventing emptying of the magazine is extremely undesirable. With a high speed production rate of thousands of filter rods a minute, several minutes delay to clean up a blockage means the loss of a relatively large number of filter rods.
Further, the filter rods have not always been accurately positioned for transfer to the transfer drum. That is, in some instances, the filter rod which is to be transferred has sometimes been askew relative to the transfer drum. Thus, when being transferred, the filter rod can be damaged, misaligned, or jammed relative to the transfer drum.
In order to overcome some of these problems, it has been known to use a vacuum assisted fluted transport drum, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,901,373. In this case, a fluted transport drum which is provided with apertures through which a vacuum is drawn is used to pick up cigarette filter rods. During use, the vacuum drawn holds the cigarette filter rods in place during transport. However, such vacuum assisted transport drums only hold the filter rod in place after loading but do not assist in the transfer of the filter rods from the magazine.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an apparatus for high speed accurate transfer of cigarette filter rods from a magazine to a transport drum.
A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for the singular high speed transfer of cigarette filter rods from a magazine through a downwardly extended chute to a transfer drum.
A further object of the invention is to transfer cigarette filter rods from a magazine to a transfer drum in a simple efficient high speed manner.
A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for the high speed transfer of cigarette filter rods which requires a minimum of maintenance.